Kerala : MBBS eligible to become lecturers under new PSC rules

Thiruvananthapuram: The new rules of the Public Service Commission are now going to allow an MBBS degree holder to become faculty in medical colleges and teach MBBS students. This, however, comes in sharp contrast to the post graduate credentials called for by the Medical Council of India to be appointed as faculty.

As per the new Public Service Commission rules, an MBBS faculty will besides teaching also supervise patient care in the medical college hospitals, which are known as specialist care hospitals.

The faculty appointment in the states are entrusted to the main functions including the following :

• teaching and training of the personal in that institute


• providing expertise in the management of patient care and research activities

With the new rules rendered by the PSC, an MBBS faculty is meant to perform all the above besides teaching. Following the same rules, the PSC has invited applications for the faculty posts in the pathology department with MBBS as basic qualifications reports

TOI.

The changes suggested by PSC come in sharp contrast to the industry standards whereby most medical institutes of the country are looking at post graduate appointments who bedsides qualifications, also have additional academic accolades in the form of form international publications and fellowships to their credit.

The Public Service Commission justification comes as the fact that the changes are based on a government order issued in 2013 which states that the entry cadre to medical college services in the state will be an assistant professor. The order mentions that in the absence of qualified postgraduate doctors for lecturers or assistant professor appointments, the government can appoint MBBS graduates as lecturers.

According to the PSC Chairman, K S Radhakrishnan ,a lecturer’s post does not necessarily call for a postgraduate degree. "We also insist on PG degrees for posts of Assistant Professor and above," he said.

The policy change, however, has been strongly opposed by the Kerala Medical Postgraduate Association (KMPGA), who have in no uncertain terms expressed open disagreement against the new Change.

"There is no shortage of post graduate doctors in the state, the problem lies in the fact that there has been no process whatsoever from the side of the government for the past many years to incorporate them into the medical college services through the PSC," stated a memorandum, submitted to the Director, Medical Education by the KMPGA